We’re already a week into the new year and oh boy, do we have a lot of exciting things planned this year. The #SiPgoesTGIF challenges continue this year and this is the first in a series of posts by me, Suné, SiP resident curator and fellow toy photography enthusiast.
In the SiP Summer Workshop 2021, participants were encouraged to make previs (short for previsualization, aka “previz”). I found it to be a very useful skill to add to my toy photography repertoire. It not only helps with planning the shot but also with making the image in your head a reality.

This can be a valuable activity in real life as well. If you can picture it in your mind, you can work towards making it real. Within reason of course. Don’t be discouraged if people don’t see what you see. Just do the work to make it happen. The key of course is in taking action. Some influencers call this manifesting, others just call it “setting goals”.

Sometimes, the stars alight and something fortuitous happens that makes the final shot even better than you planned. It did however require you to have taken all the preceding steps to be there at the right time and place. The goal is to pre-visualise what you want to have achieved in 2022 and then set out to make it a reality. And maybe, if you are lucky, 2022 will turn out better than you pictured it.
This all inspired the first prompt for the SiP Goes TGIF for 2022. Manifest.

It’s an interesting word. It means to be “clear or obvious to the eye or mind”, to “display or show (a quality or feeling) by one’s acts or appearance; demonstrate”, but a manifest (noun) is also a comprehensive document that records aspects of a voyage.

New Year’s Resolutions or setting goals for the new year is a tradition at this point. But in order to take it a step further, I challenge you to take a picture of your goal(s) for the year and then take action to make it real.
My goal
And so here is my goal for 2022. To photograph other toy brands as well.

In 2022, let’s make life imitate art.
Suné
Art Curator of the SiP goes Korea exhibition. Architect from South Africa teaching English in South Korea. Pursuing all kinds of other creative endeavors.
This, Suné, truly IS a challenge to me. Planning ahead more than one or two weeks has never been one of my favourites. But hey, challenge accepted! (Thank you putting it in words!)